45mph max speed when towing...really?

Toyota says not to tow faster than 45mph. Has anyone here towed a large trailer(say 4000lb or higher) and experienced swaying, like they say? Is this necessary, or just lawyer, playing it safe stuff? I've never towed with this truck before and don't know what to expect.

 

@ColoradoTJ might be able to help.

 

Death wobble.

 

Owners manual addresses that too. They say to slowly decelerate and try and hold the steering wheel straight.

 

Answer: Yes. No.
Small camper trailer, 20' on 12 hr. trip. Single axle trailer approx 5k pounds with a '14 CM. Easily forgot it was back there at times and had to ease off the gas when I saw the speedometer at 70+ (tried to keep it around 67mph or so). It was set up with an anti-sway hitch, but it was crazy easy to tow.

I am not concerned, which is why I bought a 24' (28 and change total length/7,500lb) double axle camper with anti-sway hitch. Plan on doing some sight seeing this springs/summer. And slaying some Kings this Fall in MI! )

 

That was done with a much bigger truck though. This is 1st Gen. So it might be different for a much newer and bigger truck.

 

I don't disagree, which is why I listed description. On a side note, I camped with a guy who had an '08 DC (I believe) and towed approx '26 camper with smaller engine. Also no issues according to him (anti-sway set up as well). "Tows like a dream..." I believe his quote was. The truck was blue though, and mine was white, so that may have made mine tow better too....

 

Whats a LDH?

 

Load distribution hitch.

I've towed heavy with my 1st gen I had previously. Lawyer stuff in my opinion, but you definitely know you are towing. Use your best judgement. You will feel the grades. Make sure you have trailer brakes and that they work properly.

 

I have a 04 and tow a trailer for work often 3k lbs dry and up to 7k fully loaded no issues going 55 not sure I would push it much past 60 but tows easy . I do have a brake controller and the trailer has brakes so that helps with stopping

 

The 02’ tows comfortably up to 3500lbs. Over that weight, you need to pay attention to your speed and distance to stopping points. The 1st Gens are a small nimble power house perfect for towing up to 3500-4k range. Slow acceleration/deceleration are key.

Other things to consider are tire quality and stock vs. lifted when towing.

 

Haven't towed anything more than about 2500 lbs, but if the weight is properly distributed it will be fine.

With my E-250 I towed a 12,000 pound trailer at about 60. It was fine until one of our dumbasses loaded the bobcat too far back. Then it started swaying at about 50. I just let off the gas and coasted down. If it starts swayin DO NOT PUSH THE BRAKES! All this was before I did research into GVWR and how to tow properly. Now I refuse to pull it with my van. We have an ext cab f-250 4x4 v10 at the shop i pull it with now and will do 70 with it no problem. Again, if the weight is distributed properly.

 

I don't tow much, but when I do I certainly don't do 45 MPH. Most of the time I forget that I have a trailer behind me.
Regarding the 1st gen: My brother in law had a first gen and now also have a first gen Sequoia which is very similar to the 1st gen tundra. He used both to pull a big (20'±) enclosed utility trailer between Maryland and Florida and did the speed limit or slightly more the whole way, every time. MPGs are not good, but that's expected. He also noted that he forget about the trailer behind him until he looks in his rear view mirror.
Make sure you load it correctly - have a little tongue weight rather than heavier behind the axles - that will get you in trouble fast.

 

It's probably because people don't know how to load a trailer. Here's a good demonstration.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWd8ml9mFMo

 

I had a 2001 4 cyl Nissan Frontier. I would tow 5000 plus pounds all over the state of FL. No trailer brakes. Key is stopping distance, I didn't have any. I'd keep weights like this under 55 to 60 on hwy. You must pay great attention to your driving environment. Granted we are pretty flat here.

With my Tundra and the power /brakes it has I can't see that being an issue.

 

Have towed just about everything with various vehicles and the above post about not braking when starting to sway is correct but if you have brakes on trailer and a brake controller in truck you can hit the controller and brake the trailer (only) a bit otherwise with no brakes on trailer you gotta slow down gradually and for Pete's sake , get that load corrected. One thing that is important is to load properly, always favor your load toward the front but not excessively . If I'm hauling my tractor , I know from experience how far to pull up on trailer. Need to get some weight on that tongue but again not too much, def need more load in front of trailer axles than in rear . As far as the 45 mph tow speed, that is a bit excessive , IN my 2006 dc Tundra, have towed a load of shingles from Kentucky to North Carolina which I guess was 7000 lbs and probably hit low 60's on 4 lane and interstate.

 

Been towing my 35' travel trailer 10000/lbs with my
Tundra without issue. I am at the max payload and towing cap and I have been very happy so far. The mpg did drop to 8-9mpg but power and braking have been awesome. I did add a weight distribution hitch (a must) with sway control. Air bags, which don't do much except level it out a little and aid if If I get in a clearance situation. I plan on adding better shocks. I suggest watching this video if you plan to do much towing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBZu39pQ8Gg Also, the trailer brake controller SUCKS on the Tundra. There is a TSB that Toyota will do on your truck to help with this but it ain't free. ~$70. I am disappointed in Toyota for not making a more robust truck and for charging to fix their issue with the controller. I do give them credit for making a very strong factory trailer hitch.

 

I tow all the time with my first gen. Mostly my 19 foot boat at 3500 lb dry probably closer to 4500 lb with a full tank of gas in the boat and all my gear. I try to do only 55 but I catch myself speeding often will Towing especially downhill. I've even towed my boat through the Salt Flats in Utah I remember hitting 80 mph with no issues. I think a lot of it has to do with weight distribution over the trailer.

 

I pull a 26 ft camper with my 06 DC that is 5200 dry. 60 down the interstate is not bad, but definitely suggest anti sway hitch. Like most said, plan your stops! Also occasionally pull a 7yard dump trailer for work, and it doesn't like that much because it is tounge heavy and doesn't have anti sway.

 

I have towed a 16 foot tandem axle trailer with a 99 Jeep Wrangler 4.0L 4x4 on it (I believe the trailer was about 1,500 lbs, Wrangler is about 3,500 lbs) with my 2005 Toyota Tundra Reg Cab Long bed 4x4 with no weight distribution hitch or sway controller, and no trailer brakes. I am not saying this is the smartest thing on earth to do, but I also have been driving 18 wheelers (tractor/trailers) for a decade, many with overweight permits so I am use to stopping WAYYYY earlier and watching WAYYYY further ahead than the average driver who drives only a class C vehicle everyday. A little commonsense goes a long way. I also did this late at night when most people were not on the road.

I have also towed that same 16 foot trailer many times with a Massey Ferguson small 4x4 diesel tractor (2,800 lbs) with a 60" brush hog (500 lbs) attached, 5,000 watt generator (120 lbs), 900 lbs of deer feed, probably another 250 lbs of ice chests, few 55 gallon drum deer feeders (200 lbs) and a Honda Foreman 4x4 in the bed of the truck. Yes I intentionally put the ATV in the bed to put more weight over the rear axle to help keep it stable and less likely to jerk the rear end around (sort of like the concept of a 5th wheel vs a bumper pull). Again, no weight distribution hitch, sway controller, or trailer brakes... just a whole lot of common sense (should be called uncommon sense because it is in fact not common for many people). Oh and again I usually drive up to the deer camp at night when nobody is on the road. Keep in mind I live in Texas where is also super flat, and we don't get a ton of high winds either, like say in Kansas. Also I know how to properly load the weight in a trailer as well.

The time I towed the Wrangler I didn't go over 60 mph, and the times I towed the trailer with the tractor and equipment, I didn't go over 70 mph.

I would always recommend you have brakes on your trailer if you are towing over 3,000 lbs, and a weight distribution hitch and sway bar are cheap insurance. You can literally get a weight distribution hitch at Harbor Freight for $210 (or on Amazon for around $200) and a sway control bar/kit for $30 (or on Amazon for $42).

 

Mine pulls better with the 4 wheeler in the back also

 

Thanks for all the input everyone. I ended up not rending a travel trailer, and just stayed at a hotel instead. It was a cheaper route for my family. But next time I think we're going to rent the trailer. One thing I should mention, is that Toyota says any trailer over 2000lb should have a "sway control device". So I definitely would make sure I have one of those installed on a large travel trailer.

I was skeptical of going up a hill with a 5000lb + trailer, but after hearing from you guys, I think it'd be fine.

 

I didn't make the drive myself but the very first thing the previous owner did when he bought the truck (like ten minutes after he bought it) was hook it up to a U-haul car hauler trailer 2200ish lbs....and put a 4runner on it and towed that five hundred miles through Montana.

Yeah, he warped the rotors going down a pass but other than it did fine.

 

I suppose over 90 mph surpasses their requirement. I was going through Nebraska 2 years ago with my 2001 towing a dual axle trailer with my 240z on it, speed limit was 80 mph and tires were rated at 84 mph, so I just had to see what she can do, and smooth as silk it peeked over 90 mph, and then I brought it down to my safe 65-70 mph and continued on.

 

I tow a 23' camper around for work, it weighs a little over 5k pounds. I use a weight distribution hitch and an anti-sway bar and have no problems towing at 75mph. My vehicle is a 2005 DC 2x4 with the 4.7L motor.

 

What tires were rated at 84? I don't know any trailer tires rated for those speeds.

 

Town Fair Tire....says it right on the side, but I wouldn't advise doing that speed normally.